2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Pisch
A surname of German origin meaning "fish" or referring to someone involved in fishing.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Pisch. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pisch surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Pisch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pisch, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pisch
The surname Pisch is believed to have originated in Germany and parts of Eastern Europe, possibly in the early medieval period. It may have derived from the German word "pisch," which means "fishy" or "fish-like," suggesting that the name could have been an occupational surname for someone involved in fishing or the fish trade.
One of the earliest known records of the name Pisch can be found in the Liber Censuum, a 13th-century manuscript compiled by the Catholic Church, which listed various landowners and taxpayers. However, the exact individual or location mentioned is unclear.
In the 15th century, a family by the name of Pisch was recorded as residing in the town of Neubrandenburg, in what is now the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It is possible that the name was associated with a specific place or region, as many surnames during that period were derived from place names or geographic features.
One notable bearer of the Pisch surname was Johann Pisch, a German theologian and philosopher who lived from 1549 to 1633. He was a prominent figure in the Protestant Reformation and authored several works on theology and ethics.
Another individual with the Pisch surname was Hans Pisch, a German painter and engraver who lived in the 16th century. While his exact dates of birth and death are unknown, some of his works can be found in museums and collections across Europe.
In the 19th century, a family by the name of Pisch settled in the United States, with records indicating their arrival in the port of New York in the 1840s. One member of this family, Wilhelm Pisch (1829-1901), became a successful businessman and landowner in the state of Ohio.
Another notable figure with the Pisch surname was Katharina Pisch, a German-born American artist and educator who lived from 1892 to 1975. She was known for her contributions to the arts community in Chicago and her work as an educator at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
While the exact origins and early history of the Pisch surname remain somewhat uncertain, it has left its mark on various regions and cultures throughout the centuries, with bearers of the name making contributions in fields ranging from theology and philosophy to art and business.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pisch
Among Census respondents with the surname Pisch, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Pisch bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Pisch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.2% · 106
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pisch
Pisch appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+7 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,351 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-8 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,097 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 2,351 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 8,097 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Pisch surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #142,108 | #150,205 | -5.7% |
| Count | 117 | 109 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pisch bearers went from 117 to 109 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 8,097 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #150,205.
FAQ
Pisch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pisch?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Pisch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Pisch?
Pisch ranks #150,205 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Pisch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Pisch.
Has Pisch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pisch went from 117 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 8 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Pisch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pisch, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (0.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Pisch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.2% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pisch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.2%), Hispanic (1.8%), Two or More Races (0.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Pisch (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Pisch mean?
A surname of German origin meaning "fish" or referring to someone involved in fishing. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Pisch (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Pisch?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Pisch is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.